A Look at the Toddler Phase and Their Development

This article is written by Karissa Tunis For more on this topic, check out the full All About Toddlers collection

It is amazing how quickly children grow up and change throughout the toddler years!

I remember when I had my first baby. It seemed like it took so long for her to smile, hold her head up, roll over, grab a toy, and so on. These were big accomplishments for her, but changes happened more slowly as it would take several weeks (or months) between hitting the different milestones.

But eventually she achieved everything that a baby learns to do, and eventually she became a toddler.

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Then it seemed like every day she was discovering something new. Every day she was trying new things, pushing her limits and becoming more independent. She had a strong personality, knew exactly what she wanted, and I loved every minute of it!

Fast forward a few years and now I have three children. My oldest is now 9, and my youngest is 4 years old. I feel like we are almost out of the toddler phase, and I am trying my hardest to pump the breaks and soak it all in! As fun as it is to see them continuing to grow and learn, I can honestly say that the toddler phase was/is one of my favorites!

Sure each phase brings along their own set of challenges and loves, but there is something so incredibly sweet about watching an innocent little child blossom into their own little person. I love watching them explore the world around them. I love their curiosity, their little chubby hands, their wet kisses, their sweet little hugs, their darling little voices, their determination to do it themselves….I love it all!

Below I created an infographic that highlights some of the developments a toddler might achieve. But let me be clear that I am not a doctor; just a mom that loves the toddler stage and enjoys doing a little research. If you are ever concerned about your child’s development, please speak with your pediatrician.

As a mom of three (1 girl and 2 boys), I can tell you from my own personal experience that boys and girls develop in different orders and at different paces. But even my two boys hit their milestones at different times. Their personalities are different, their focus is different, their interests are different, & their learning styles are different; so I always try to be careful about comparing them to each other, or comparing them to any other children.

Every child is different, every child is unique, every child is special, and every child should be celebrated as they grow and learn new things 🙂